An Olympic dream cut short: Father of late Singapore Sports School student opens up on son’s untimely death

SINGAPORE: When Pranav Madhaik first joined his primary school's badminton team, his teacher asked him to do up a drawing of his ambitions.

So he sketched himself standing atop a podium, with one hand clasping a medal and the other a racket. 

He was saying "I want to be an Olympic champion", his father Prem Singh Madhaik told CNA on Thursday (Oct 12).

But that dream was left unfulfilled when Pranav died on Wednesday at the age of 14.

About a week earlier, the Singapore Sports School student had been hospitalised after feeling unwell following a fitness time trial.

The school has promised to undertake a detailed investigation and to thoroughly review its safety protocols.

Meanwhile, Pranav’s parents are still grappling with questions over exactly what and how this could have happened to their second of three sons.

"STRUGGLING"

Mr Prem Singh Madhaik and his wife were at home last Thursday (Oct 5) when the Sports School called.

Something had happened to Pranav; he was not feeling well; and he was in an ambulance heading to the National University Hospital, the school told them.

The couple booked a Grab car and rushed to the hospital, where medical personnel were already attending to Pranav and performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

“He was lying down on the bed like a stone and there was no motion at all,” said Mr Madhaik.

Hospital staff told the parents that their son’s pulse and heartbeat were very weak.

“We couldn't even talk to him," said Mr Madhaik. For the next six days, he continued hoping that his son would recover and be well again.

Track and field student-athletes from the Sports School came down to the hospital, and told Mr Madhaik that they had seen Pranav alone and struggling with chest pains after his time trial.

The parents have sought answers from Pranav's coaches as well as Sports School management.

“There is a lot of anxiety," said Mr Madhaik, though he added that the family would wait for the school to conclude investigations. 

"The damage is already done. Now it’s more to know and see what could have been done to prevent this for the future, so that a similar issue doesn’t happen again.” 

On Friday, the Sports School told CNA it has reached out to Pranav’s parents to arrange for a meeting to share preliminary findings.

"VERY HIGH HOPES FOR HIMSELF"

Though beset with grief, Mr Madhaik lit up when talking about Pranav's life, describing him as a charming boy who got along well with others. 

Seeing the number of people who came to send him off on Wednesday, Mr Madhaik said he could tell that his son was loved by peers and teachers.

Pranav was devoted to badminton, a journey which started as early as in Kindergarten 2 when he watched his elder brother and father play the sport daily at a park near their house.

Pranav eventually joined the St Joseph's Institution Junior badminton team in Primary 2, and became team captain in Primary 6. 

After completing his Primary School Leaving Examination, he told his parents he wanted to play badminton full-time. 

“He was too inclined to play badminton. Studying was secondary,” said Mr Madhaik. “It’s very tough to absorb whatever happened because Pranav had very high hopes for himself."

During an interview with the Singapore Sports School, Pranav said that as a first step, he wanted to become as successful as Indonesian badminton player Anthony Sinisuka Ginting, an Asian champion and current world No 2.

And when asked how he was inspired by the likes of Ginting and Singapore's own world champion Loh Kean Yew, Pranav’s answer was: “I want to do better than them”.

PROFESSIONAL GOALS

Pranav's family only saw him once a week as he stayed at the Sports School's boarding facility.

But not once did the boy complain that life as a student-athlete was hard, said Mr Madhaik.

In fact, he was very self-motivated and never wanted to miss a single training session.

Asked if Pranav - and other youths in sport - were perhaps being pushed too hard and too early, Mr Madhaik said: “If you want to achieve the highest level of success … you need to work hard and train hard. Only then you will see the result.

“If you want to play at a professional level, you need to do that. If you want to play for leisure, then that is a different track; you can take it like an exercise," he added.

"But Pranav was looking for a professional career as a badminton player." 

His two brothers aged 17 and 13 also play badminton for their respective schools. They have taken Pranav's death hard, and feel like he's "leaving them alone", said Mr Madhaik.

“It's very tough for them, because they play together a lot. Especially the younger two, they grew up together.

“But we have to prepare them to face the reality.”